Dr. Nikki Harter

Education

Ph.D.: Department of Chemistry, Texas Tech University

Postdoc: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

Research Interests

Research in the Harter Laboratory focuses on three major areas:

(1) understanding the role of the transcription factor MyoD in the biology of satellite cells, the adult stem cells of skeletal muscle. Satellite cells are primarily responsible for skeletal muscle growth and repair, and in response to injury, they leave quiescence, proliferate at length, and then differentiate to form new muscle. We have new evidence suggesting that MyoD helps satellite cells to enter into the first round of DNA replication after transitioning out of
quiescent

(2) determine whether solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation can induce epigenetic changes in the melanocytes of human skin, and if so, whether these alterations foster subsequent genetic changes that ultimately lead to the development of melanoma. Melanoma is a lethal skin malignancy of increasing incidence, and numerous studies have pointed to the importance of UV in its development

(3) understanding the nature of cellular quiescence at the level of chromatin structure. Insight into the organization of chromatin in establishing and maintaining cellular quiescence is critically important for understanding the biology underlying the development of human cancer.